Rockford’s Saint Anthony offering new nursing doctorate program

Saturday

Mar 29, 2014 at 4:00 PM

By Melissa WestphalRockford Register Star

ROCKFORD — Saint Anthony College of Nursing is offering nurse practitioners a new doctorate program, which is an opportunity to boost their training as the nation increases access to health care for millions more Americans.

Applications for the program will be available on the college’s website starting Tuesday, April 1.

College President Terri Burch expects the first class to include only a handful of people but stressed the importance of expanding training opportunities.

Nurse practitioners can diagnose and treat health conditions and prescribe medications. They often team with physicians and other providers on disease prevention and health management, according to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners.

They must complete a master’s or doctoral degree program and training beyond earning their registered nurse license.

The Affordable Care Act is aiming to insure nearly 30 million more people at the same time the country is experiencing a physician shortage. Nurse practitioners and physician assistants help fill the gap, particularly for primary care and other everyday health needs.

“We’ve found that for routine care, preventative care and community-based care, the (advanced nurse practitioner) can meet those needs,” Burch said. “They frequently carry their own license, and they can function independently.”

Saint Anthony graduates about 10 master’s students a year and has about 75 students enrolled in the master’s program. Nurses often will work full time at hospitals, nursing homes or in-home care settings and take classes at their own pace, meaning there’s not a rigid timeline for graduation for advanced degrees.

Nursing students can start school to earn their bachelor’s of science degree in nursing and work straight through to earn their doctorate.

“Some students, if they go get a job immediately as an RN, it’s hard to go back to school,” Burch said. “If they go straight through, they don’t get distracted, but then they do need the (experience). The program is designed to be six credits a semester, which allows students to work at the same time so they get the best of both worlds.

“What’s good for one may not be good for the other.”

The doctorate degree is considered to be a clinical degree, which means graduating nurses most often continue practicing medicine. They can pick one of two tracts — one more focused on the practice side or one that has more training for a potential leadership role, such as a chief nursing officer of a medical center.

One benefit of working while going to school, Burch noted, is that many hospitals and medical centers offer tuition reimbursement for graduate programs for their employees.

Schools affiliated with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, of which Saint Anthony is a part, endorsed efforts back in 2004 to boost the number of advanced practice nurses with doctorate degrees by 2015. Burch expects Saint Anthony’s doctorate program will include mostly local students at first, but she thinks it will attract students from outside the region in the future.

The University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford also offers a doctorate of nursing practice program.

There have been additional efforts to expand nursing training locally in recent years. Rasmussen College launched a program for students to earn their associate degree in nursing last summer. Nursing programs also are offered through Rock Valley College and Rockford University.